Who needs Speedy Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become much more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every day that bank on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The range of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that each person has in their homes, seems to increase everyday.

Kirklington Broadband Deals For April 2024

Connection Type	Availablity
FTTC / Fibre / Superfast Broadband	Yes
Cable / Virgin Media	Some Areas
ADSL / Broadband	Yes
4G	Yes

Working from home is commonplace as it saves people being stuck in commuter traffic, something that most of us would love to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to come to grips with the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances turned on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company manages to do what they want online– all concurrently– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of right up to 300Mbps in the UK.

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to surf the internet, stream music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively more than most internet users.

While the current average UK broadband connection is around 12Mbps (2014), superfast broadband products deliver speeds of right up to 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks like Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does superfast internet operate?

Unlike the majority of UK broadband connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s quickest broadband product – the 100Mbps service from Virgin Media (it’s 200Mbps in some areas) – is delivered by a cable, or fibre-optic, broadband network. These cables are made of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper cables used by traditional DSL internet .

BT also offers a more than 76Mb fibre-optic service called BT Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have resold BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded high speed cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not only on offer to people in a fibre broadband locations. Fast broadband is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband area. If you live within a certain range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ internet services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connectivity uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but as a result of the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of around 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “around 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the wiring and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you inhabit a town or built up area you can realistically expect speeds of approximately 16Mb or more. This still provides more than enough bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast broadband product is the best?

Among the UK’s quickest broadband products is Virgin Media’s 152Mbps service. Virgin Media, which also offers 50Mbps broadband products as a bare minimum, is able to deliver such fast connections as a result of its super-fast fibre-optic connectivity network.

BT’s Infinity package delivers a maximum speed of 76Mbps and the previously mentioned services from Sky, EE and TalkTalk, which use BT’s fibre network and feature headline speeds according to BT.

 

 

Alternatively, broadband products offering an up to 16Mbps (or thereabouts) connection are available from most providers. The arrival of these speeds has been facilitated by an upgrade of BT’s network with ADSL2+ technology, enabling the existing cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fibre optic broadband ?

Your initial step is to see which high speed internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of high speed broadband connectivity

Super fast internet connectivity can let you enjoy all the services on offer online. You will have the capacity to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you demand it , and banishing the hanging around for big downloads.

Fans of on-demand programmes will love their favourite shows on the BBC iPlayer , as well as rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by fibre internet means that when online gaming you gain an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of fibre internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and rely on things that are out of your control , like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Regardless of whether fibre connectivity is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher price .

Who is  fibre connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the amount of people downloading music , downloading video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no more a typical user of super-fast internet connectivity.

If you are a heavy downloader or are one of the increasing number of consumers who prefer to catch up with TV programmes online, it makes sense to sign up for a fibre connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super fast internet is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  caused by slower traditional internet services . This can seriously ruin your gaming experience .

If you only use the internet for checking your e-mail and for the occasional search, it’s more prudent to take a standard ADSL connection.

Kirklington – Other Areas

Over Haddon

Sealand

Kirkfieldbank

Chillingham

Far Moor

Austrey

Great Bowden

Palehouse Common

Hopton Wafers

Smythes Green